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Friday, March 22, 2013

From the mystical lands of Fife emerges Glory

Northern Ireland exclusive interview with the man behind Gloryhammwer

SOMETHING
has been brewing in the dark forests round the mystical kingdom of Fife as a
certain pirate returned from sailing the seven seas for plunder and other such
amusements…

Chris Bowes,
the mastermind behind those jolly pirate jesters in Alestorm, has decided that
he just needed another project to keep the creative juices flowing; and for this
no main brace is being spliced; the Jolly Roger is being stowed in a treasure
chest buried deep beneath Cowdenbeath…

Yes Bowes is
back with a tale based in the mythical kingdom of Fife, which until now didn’t
perhaps know it had an entire past filled with goblins, trolls, dragons and…well
with unicorns too.

Gloryhammer
is the new band, and the new album is ‘Tales from the Kingdom of Fife’ [read
the review here],
and what promises to be the first of 21 albums from Gloryhammer…Surely Bowes
must be an inveterate workaholic.

“Hah I guess
so! I seem to start a new band every week; most of them never get very far, but
there was something special about Gloryhammer which made me want to take it to
this level,” he told Belfastmetalheads. “It's not too hard being in two big
bands at once; I've got plenty of time to bring both to full potential.”

Plenty of
time or not, putting together a band as ambitious in its scope as Gloryhammer –
even with the slight phnarr, phnarr of the band name – requires more than just
a few good ideas. Bowes vision is one firmly rooted in that much maligned genre
– fantasy power metal. It’s a genre that conjures up more than a snigger, even
amongst devotees, but it speaks firmly to the interests of the keyboardist.

“I've always had an interest in fantasy power metal, so it was only a matter of
time before I started a band of my own,” he said. “Most of the members are
friends of mine in local bands, apart from our amazing singer Thomas who we
found through his online audition to join Dragonforce; thankfully we managed to
snatch him up before he joined that band!”

But as anyone
with any familiarity with Bowes and his crew aboard the good ship Alestorm will
know he is a man firmly committed to the concept of playing the joke with a
straight face.

“A few years
back I was trying to think of the most ridiculous concept for a song ever, and ‘The
Unicorn Invasion of Dundee’ just came to me.

“So I came
up with this ludicrous story in which the traditional fantasy memes were
transplanted to a sleepy part of Eastern Scotland. So there are unicorns in
Dundee, eagle-riding knights in Crail, and goblin tunnels beneath Cowdenbeath.

“All very
standard stuff,” he explained. Well standard stuff if Tolkien had dropped an acid
tab and chewed some mushies while strolling around Dundee.

Musical
prowess is on display throughout ‘Tales from the Kingdom of Fife’ with singer
Thimas Winkler being stretched throughout, not least on ‘Silent Tears of Frozen
Princess’.

“Like all
legendary power metal albums, our one needed a soulful piano ballad with female
vocals,” said Bowes. “Most of the credit for this one must go to our drummer
Ben Turk (aka Ralathor, the Mysterious Hermit of Cowdenbeath).

“He has a
very keen ear for classically ‘perfect’ compositions, and I think it really hit
the spot. I'm sure a lot of metal fans won't enjoy the song, but it really
helps tie the album together.”

Bowes also isn’t
afraid to name check the bands who he pays homage to on ‘Tales from the Kingdom
of Fife’ and where he draws his inspiration for Gloryhammer.

“I've long
been a fan of the "classic" symphonic power metal bands who were in
their prime in the late 1990's and early 2000's; Rhapsody, Hammerfall, Stratovarius,
Sonata Arctica, Edguy etc,” he said “I feel a lot of these bands have lost their
way in recent years with over-elaborate compositions, so we want to bring back
the innocence these bands had in their early days. Short catchy singalong
songs!”

Gloryhammer
have proved on this début that there is an enduring legacy within power metal,
and as long as it is played with a straight face, and a wink to the audience to
ensure they are in on the joke, then we can all join in and pretend to wield
out own broadsword, cast spells to banish evil sorcerers and generally have a
great time along the way. Sure it is

With so many
so-called super groups out there committing their names to albums, and
musicians guest appearing on dozens of others of albums, can we expect
Gloryhammer to tour?

“Very much
so! We have just signed a booking deal with the renowned ‘Dragon Productions’,
who shall be doing their best to stick us on as many tours and festivals as
possible. We are all very eager to bring our show to the live stage.”

But the
story doesn’t end with a tour…

We are planning 3 cycles of 7 albums each, for a total of 21 albums. We will
call the whole thing ‘The Septological Triumvirate’,” explained Bowes – and we’re
not sure how far his tongue is in his cheek, but he went on. “This is of
course, the very long term plan.

“We are
already working on album number 2, which shall continue the story of Angus
McFife and Zargothrax into the far future, with a tale that spans the entire
galaxy! Watch this space(ship).”

So, who
would have known while mystical battles were being waged around Fife and the
mighty warrior McFife was preparing yet again to do battle across the span of
history.

All hail
Gloryhammer! Now where did we put that broadsword and who has stolen our natty
new armour?